Womens Water Polo Set to Meet No. 7 Michigan in Opening Round of Eastern Championship

Apr 29, 2010

Photo courtesy of Gil Talbot Photography.

The Particulars:
The Harvard women’s water polo team will face No. 7 Michigan
in the opening game of the Eastern Championship. The three-day
event will be held at the University of Maryland’s Eppley
Recreation Center, April 30-May 2. The winner of the event earns
the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA Championships.

Follow From Home:
The Collegiate Water Polo Association has teamed up with Stretch
Internet to provide live video coverage throughout the entire
weekend. To watch the Eastern Championship live, click here.

Last Time Out:
Harvard suffered a 14-10 loss to Brown to close out the regular
season. Aisha Price lead the offensive attack with four goals. Ita
Barton-Kettleborough registered a hat trick while Devan Kennifer
netted a pair of goals. Shannon Purcell rounded out the scoring,
finding the back of the net once in the contest.

About Harvard:
The Crimson enters the weekend with a 12-12 overall record and
finished third in the CWPA Northern Division with a 1-3 mark.
Harvard is 2-7 against the tournament field, having defeated Brown
and Bucknell. Devan Kennifer paces the squad with 62 goals on the
year. Monica Zdrojewski has tallied 29 goals while Ita
Barton-Kettleborough and Aisha Price have scored 28 apiece. Laurel
McCarthy has turned aside 150 shots and sports an 8.80
goals-against average.

About Michigan:
The Wolverines carry a 29-6 record into the tournament, after
capturing the CWPA Western Division title with a 5-0 mark. Alison
Mantel has scored 49 goals and registered 42 assists for 91 points
on the season. Michigan has had 25 players find the back of the net
this season while all 30 players have registered a point. The
Wolverines have tallied 388 goals on the year. Five goalies
have seen action between the pipes and have combined to post a 6.13
goals-against average.

The Last Meeting:
The Crimson and Wolverines squared off Feb. 21 at the Princeton
Invitational. Michigan handed Harvard its first loss of the 2010
campaign, a 13-3 decision. Kristina Bergquist, Devan Kennifer and
Elise Molnar each scored a goal in the contest. Laurel McCarthy
stopped seven shots in the game.

How They Got Here:
Bucknell, Hartwick and Michigan each earned an automatic bid to the
tournament after capturing the title in their respective divisions.
Brown, Indiana and Princeton all received automatic berths after
finishing in second-place in their divisions. Harvard and Maryland
were awarded at-large berths to the championship by the selection
committee.

The Schedule:
To view the entire schedule of the Eastern Championship, click here.